ASIMO Applauds Young Scientists At Belgian Robot Festival

Mechelen, Belgium, 23rd-25th April 2010 - The New ASIMO travelled to Belgium this week to attend a three-day festival celebrating science and robotics. The event was designed for children and young families to learn about science in a fun and engaging way and held at Technopolis, the city's popular science and education centre.

ASIMO at the Belgian finals of RoboCup Junior

During the visit ASIMO was brought face to face with budding local scientists and engineers at the Flemish regional heat of RoboCup Junior; an international robot building competition open to children of primary and secondary school ages. This year saw a record 37 team participate - 328 youngsters in total.

Once the judging had been decided, ASIMO helped Ms Ingrid Lieten, the Flemish Minister for Innovation, Public Investment, Media and Poverty Reduction, hand out the awards during the prize-giving ceremony.

On the final day, a series of interactive workshops and scientific demonstrations were also organised for families, including two performances of ASIMO. These allowed the visitors to hear the history and vision of Honda's research into humanoid robotics and see ASIMO's latest abilities and agility for themselves.

Commenting on Honda's involvement with the robot festival and RoboCup Junior, William De Braekeleer, Honda Motor Europe's Corporate Communication Manager said: "Honda is committed to helping inspire young European scientists, so seeing these children with ASIMO is incredibly rewarding and exciting. Their minds were in overdrive, learning how this humanoid robot - once a dream - is now a reality."